More Than Soup: A Long Obedience vs Momentary Satisfaction

Introduction

We are starting a new series as we finish out our journey through the book of Genesis. We are calling it WRESTLED, REFINED, REDEEMED: Walking with Jacob and Joseph.

We are going to explore the transformative journeys of Jacob and Joseph, two pivotal figures in Genesis whose lives demonstrate God's relentless pursuit and redemptive work. Through their stories of struggle, growth, and reconciliation, we'll uncover timeless truths about faith, family, and divine purpose. Divine Encounters: God's interventions in human lives Character Transformation: From deceit to integrity Family Dynamics: Conflict, forgiveness, and restoration Providence: God's hidden hand in apparent setbacks Redemption: Personal, familial, and national restoration.

Our hope is to walk alongside these flawed yet faithful patriarchs, witnessing how God wrestles with our human nature, refines our character through trials, and ultimately redeems our stories for His glory.

If you have your Bibles, or on your devices you may turn to Genesis 25:19-34. If you are willing and able would you stand with me as I read God’s word this morning. This is the word of the Lord. Let us pray. You may be seated.

God’s Presence in the Impossible

(vv. 19-23)

The 20yr wait for children

What have we waited for that took 20yrs? An active waiting where you knew the need and it took 20yrs to fill? The closest I thing I can think of in my life is a sports team winning some sort of championship. I live in a culture that despises delayed self gratification. I want it now.

Burger King: “Your way, right away” Disneyland: “Happiest place on Earth” (you get there, you’ll be happy) Walmart: “Save Money. Live Better” Nike: “Just Do It” Sprite: “Obey Your Thirst” Amazon Prime: “Get It Today DoorDash, Instacart… all designed to communicate urgency for your needs

Reading this, our minds and hearts are being redirected to Abraham and Sarah and their wait and longing for a promise of an heir that would come from them. The Bible does this where it points back to something similar that others have gone through.

This is intentional as it should spark a hope and a trust that God is going to keep His promises.

As we read, the wait was 20yrs… Isaac was 40 when he married Rebekah and then 60 when the twins were born.

The tension is two-fold: 1) Practically: in that day, if you didn’t have children it was difficult to survive. Think of not only of hands to do the work but also in loyalty and fidelity to the family. Less likely of being overthrown or robbed by servants and helpers that might overwhelm the family and take their land and possessions. 2) Spiritually: God said through Abraham’s family (ie.Isaac) that His promise would come. It can’t come if there are no children. No nation can come about if there are no children, no people. There’s a lot at stake.

Maybe you’ve been in that spot where you are, “God, I need you to show up… and show up soon.” Look at what they do next.

Prayer as a response to the hardship

They inquire of the Lord… let us be people of prayer.

Prayer conference next weekend (walking w/ God through pain/suffering)

Jesus often withdrew to pray; Luke 5:16 “But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.”

Philippians 4:6 “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”

Romans 8:26–27 “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.”

God answers through twins who struggle

God answers their prayer. Rebekah conceives twins.

Often times when we think … ahhhh… answered prayer, that it’s our story book fairy tale, “happily ever after.” God let them know that there are “two nations” in her womb.

God’s answers to prayer are good, right, and true. It doesn’t seem like a gift on the outset, but God’s purposes also carry a deeper purpose than maybe what we can perceive on the outset. The struggle itself becomes part of the blessing, shaping both the twins and those who are involved. Just like answers to our prayers, the results can often times mean more responsibility and an invitation to allow the Lord to work in our heart, doing deep soul work.

God always answers prayer… the answer is ‘yes’, ‘no’, or ‘wait’. The answers to prayer are for our good and His glory.

Again, this brings us back to Abraham… Isaac and Ishmael. Abraham loved them both. God promised he would bless Ishmael and that he’d become a great people, but God’s promise to Abraham was going through Isaac. So here too we see that there are two people in which a large nations will come through these two men (now in utero).

The divine inversion: "The older shall serve the younger"

To this end, God is going to turn the cultural practice upside down (foreshadow of other things to come later). The older is going to serve the younger. This culturally is not how things happen.

If you read chapters 25 and 27 without knowing the ending, they seem to focus on Esau’s story. This makes sense because Esau is the oldest son and should inherit everything. He is the main character who makes things happen, while his brother Jacob just responds to events. In the book of Genesis, younger sons often end up succeeding, but this usually happens because the older sons lose their special position through their own actions. Throughout Isaac’s family story, both Esau and Jacob face challenges that test their character and create conflict between them.

Human Nature Revealed

(vv. 24-28)

Two distinctly different sons

The first son was Esau

There is an odd displacement of etymology in the naming sentence, perhaps because the writer was not sure what “Esau” actually meant. “Ruddy,” ‘adom, refers to another name for Esau, Edom (as in verse 30), and the “hairy” component of the mantle simile, sear, refers to Edom’s territory, Seir.

The second son was Jacob

In this instance, the etymology is transparent: Ya’aqob, “Jacob,” and ‘aqeb, “heel.” The grabbing of the heel by the younger twin becomes a kind of emblem of their future relationship, and the birth, like the oracle/pronouncement earlier by God, again invokes the struggle against who gets the rights and blessings of the first born. The original meaning of the name Jacob was probably something like “God protects” or “God follows after.” Ya’ (God) akov (follow). If you have been apart of church for any time and have studied this passage, many if not all then derive that Jacob means deceiver, and I don’t think this is what parents probably initially set out to do… because of Jacob’s actions we see how it becomes the “heel catcher”/deceiver… but again, I’m not convinced this is what they originally intended.

As a side note to parents, care-takers, aunties/uncles… your words have power. Do not speak negative things over your the children in your care. They believe you, they live into it, why in the world would you want them to live into negative things when we call them “black sheep”, “the rebellious child”, “the problem kid”. I recognize we can develop that about ourselves when we’re older and look back… but if you follow and love Jesus (even if you don’t, but that’s what I’m appealing to), would you speak life, strength, compassion, love, care, and wisdom into your children. Catch them doing good and call that out. Tell them who God has made them to be. We are not our worst mistakes. We are not our worst proclivities… speak life. If you have done it, humble yourself to your child/niece/nephew/god-kid, and apologize and start speaking life over them. Words are powerful.

Parental favoritism emerges

The “love” each parent shows for his or her respective favorite (v. 28) does not suggest that the other son is unloved. Rather, the verb translated “love” is indicative of favor, choice, and preference (cf. its use for an alliance between kings in 1 Kings 5:1). Rebekah undoubtedly loves both her children, but Jacob is her favorite and receives preferential treatment from her. Walton, J. H. (2001). Genesis (p. 549). Zondervan.

Isaac like the food that Esau was able to hunt, bring back, and putting in his mouth. So Isaac developed a great appreciation for Esau.

Jacob being described as one to “stay at home among the tents” was something that is more akin to administration, governing, overseeing the property, the servants, the needs of the family. They each were drawn to different things. We would be mistaken to highlight one of more importance than the other and we would miss the point of the text if we did.

Cultural expectations vs. divine plans

I think our cultural expectations can be misleading. We can look at hunter, strong, adaptable, tough as leadership characteristics that God would “OF COURSE” choose him. Especially compared to the administrative nerd and whiz kid. Without giving too much away, God chooses the “weaker vessel”. Why?

Often times in scripture God’s favor can’t be forced, manipulated, or indebted… it just is. It’s not merited on cultural standing but on His sovereign purposes (they are not abstract, I think they make sense), but it does point us to later scripture that we can read in 1 Corinthians 1:26–29 “Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him.”

I’m giving it away here… This sets up the larger narrative where God consistently works through unexpected people and means to accomplish His purposes - ultimately pointing to Christ, who came not as a conquering king but as a suffering servant.

The Choice that Reveals Character

(vv. 29-34)

Momentary satisfaction vs. lasting inheritance

Esau comes in from hunting or being in the open country and sees Jacob with the stew. The writer seeks to communicate to us about the moment here. In the Hebrew, what Esau says is something along the lines of, “let me hoark down some of this red red stuff.” *put in your best cave man voice here*

Often times the dialogue among people are as normal as the narration of the story, here the writer comes close to assigning substandard Hebrew to highlight how rude Esau is in the moment (honestly nothing new between siblings). The famished brother cannot even come up with the ordinary Hebrew word for “stew” (nazid) and instead points to the bubbling pot impatiently as (literally) “this red red.”

The verb he uses for “gulping down” occurs nowhere else in the Bible, but in Hebrew it is reserved for the feeding of animals. He’s trying to communicate a pretty immature dramatic scene that’s taking place.

Esau's impulsiveness and Jacob's opportunism

Jacob sees this and tries to be opportunistic and take what is not ordinarily available to him. The trade is quite disproportionate since it is extremely unlikely that Esau would actually have died of starvation (“Look, I am about to die” is a dramatic exaggeration). The story thus characterizes Esau as someone who cares about the present more than the future. It also marks him as a person who is interested in sensual things, not spiritual things. Longman, T., III. (2016). Genesis (T. Longman III, Ed.; p. 333). Zondervan.

Unlike Esau’s hasty way of speaking, Jacob chooses his words very carefully, even down to where he places the word “me” in his sentences (if we were to transliterate this verse it’s “Sell this day your birthright to me”. While Esau appears too focused on physical desires to deserve his birthright (his rights as the firstborn son), Jacob comes across as someone who calculates every move. Although this careful planning might help him win and keep the birthright, it doesn’t make him a very likable character. This raises moral questions that will follow Jacob throughout his story.

Five telling verbs: ate, drank, got up, left, despised

Esau comes across as a very practical, down-to-earth person. In Genesis 25, we see him do five simple things in a row: he ate, drank, got up, left, and despised his birthright. The way these actions are listed together suggests that Esau treated giving up his birthright as casually as eating a meal. The birthright was his claim to the family inheritance, but Esau didn’t value this important family tradition. His casual attitude toward his inheritance suggests he wouldn’t have valued the spiritual blessing of God’s covenant either. Walton, J. H. (2001). Genesis (p. 558). Zondervan.

This is how the chapter ends… Esau ate, drank, got up, left, and despised his birthright.

God's Purposes Prevail (Series Theme Introduction)

Working through flawed people

We should take comfort in this. If you have traded comfort for holiness… it’s ok, you’re in good company. Your not hopeless. Have you schemed, manipulated, and deceived someone for your own gain (maybe even family)… that’s ok, you’re not hopeless either.

We should also take a breath when we want to judge or come out harshly against other ‘image-bearers’. It’s not that there isn’t accountability, but recognize that when we are decidedly certain this is THE ONLY WAY that God works, we miss out… in fact many missed Jesus because He was not what they expected.

The tension between human choices and divine sovereignty

Human choices: Isaac prays for his wife, parents gravitate towards those they prefer more, Jacob schemes, Esau makes rash decisions, everyone works within their character.

Divine sovereignty: God opens Rebekah’s womb, prophetic word about her sons, God’s plan is not thwarted by their choices/failures, the promise remains through what will be unexpected means.

Intersection: Human sin can’t stop God’s plan; God works through, not despite, human agency; Everyone remains responsible for their choices (reaping consequences); God’s sovereignty doesn’t justify wrong means.

Hope in God's long-term redemptive plan

1 Samuel 15:29 “He who is the Glory of Israel does not lie or change his mind; for he is not a human being, that he should change his mind.””

Psalm 119:89–91 “Your word, Lord, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens. Your faithfulness continues through all generations; you established the earth, and it endures. Your laws endure to this day, for all things serve you.”

Hebrews 6:17–18 “Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be greatly encouraged.”

Closing Application:

Questions that we might reflect on and ponder:

Where do we trade eternal value for temporary satisfaction?

“… I think most of us have Esau moments, where we would be willing to sell our spiritual birthright in Christ for a bowl of soup. After all, following Christ does not lead to immediate gratification like a good bowl of soup or a steak does when you are hungry. The Christian life is deeply meaningful and brings significance to our lives, but if we understand the “abundant life” it offers as a perfectly happy, suffering-free life, then we will be quickly let down and be susceptible to the less than spiritual joys of what offer themselves to us in the present.” Longman, T., III. (2016). Genesis (T. Longman III, Ed.; p. 337). Zondervan.

How might we seek to find peace in God's timing?

Christ as the ultimate fulfillment of God's promises

Christ stands as the ultimate fulfillment of the themes woven through Jacob and Esau's story. Through divine inversion, He enters humanity in humble circumstances, establishing a kingdom where the last become first and strength is perfected in weakness. His timing reflects God's patient work toward redemption – appearing in the "fullness of time" after 400 years of silence. Unlike Esau, who traded his birthright for immediate satisfaction, Christ chooses the path of suffering over instant glory. Unlike Jacob, who secured his blessing through deception, Christ achieves righteousness perfectly. In the ultimate display of divine sovereignty working through human choice, Christ willingly gives up divine privileges, purchases our inheritance through His blood, and makes us co-heirs with Him. He restores what we, like Esau, have squandered, transforming this ancient narrative from historical account to a profound picture of our need for redemption and God's gracious provision through Christ.

As the Father would speak from the mount where Jesus was transfigured before Peter, James, and John… Matthew 17:5 “While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!””